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Humane Society Rescues Hundreds Of Dogs From Crowded Shelters In Puerto Rico
By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 25, 2017
Modified Aug 26, 2017
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By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 25, 2017
Modified Aug 26, 2017
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Earlier this week, the Humane Society of the United States led an effort to bring more than 200 dogs from crowded Puerto Rican animal shelters to new homes. And 19 of the puppers ended up at rescue groups in NYC and in the Hamptons.
"We're grateful to all of the receiving organizations for opening their doors to these dogs in need," said Kim Alboum, director of sheltering outreach and policy engagement for The HSUS. "We hope this operation results in new homes for these wonderful dogs and provides much-needed breathing room for the animal shelters as they work toward sustainable solutions to the massive pet overpopulation on the island."
Besides being overcrowded, some of the shelters in Puerto Rico don't have running water or electricity. The effort, nicknamed "Operation Grey Muzzle," also targeted senior dogs.
“The people there are doing the absolute best that they can, but they need assistance,” Cherie Wachter, spokeswoman for the Humane Society of Broward County in Florida, told the Sun Sentinel. "So I’m sure this will provide relief just by removing some of the animals so they can start working on their facility." The HSUS in Broward took in 24 dogs.
Tiffany Lacey of Animal Haven in Soho told us, "Animal Haven is proud to partner with The Sato Project and HSUS on their incredible rescue of over 200 dogs from Puerto Rico. Late on Wednesday night, we took in 14 of these pups in crisis. They have been through so much and we are thrilled to be able to be a part of the effort. For information on adopting please visit animalhavenshelter.org." She shared a photograph of one dog, Gamboa (see photo 11 above); other dogs, like Rivi, are now online.
The other New York dogs (photos 12-16) were sent to Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons. "ARF received five dogs on this recent transport in conjunction with the Sato Project, we were very excited to be participating with this wonderful organization and we are happy to help care for these deserving dogs that are getting a second chance at life and we look to find them new homes in the next week to 10 days," Senior Director of Operations & Partnership Programs Michele Forrester said.
"We received five small dogs ranging in age from 8 months to five years in varying, shapes, colors and sizes. All the dogs are doing very well and settling in nicely here at ARF, they are happy to be out of a moving vehicle; it was a very long traveling day for them on Wednesday."
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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